Elon Musk's X claims "orders" from India to withhold account, disagrees

Elon Musk's X (formerly Twitter) has stirred controversy by alleging that the Indian government issued "orders," demanding action on specific accounts and posts. Despite the company's assertion, the government has yet to respond to these claims.

In a statement released by X's Global Government Affairs division, the social media giant expressed its disagreement with the directive stating that the withholding of posts should not impinge on freedom of expression. Nevertheless, X affirmed its intention to comply with the Indian government's mandate.

"Global Government Affairs @GlobalAffairs The Indian government has issued executive orders requiring X to act on specific accounts and posts, subject to potential penalties including significant fines and imprisonment," the statement declared.

"In compliance with the orders, we will withhold these accounts and posts in India alone; however, we disagree with these actions and maintain that freedom of expression should extend to these posts," it continued.

X disclosed that a petition contesting the government's order was currently pending. "Consistent with our position, a writ appeal challenging the Indian government's blocking orders remains pending. We have also provided the impacted users with notice of these actions in accordance with our policies," the statement added.

This development follows a previous legal dispute between X and the Indian government. Last June, the Karnataka High Court dismissed X's plea against government directives to block certain social media accounts and tweets. Subsequently, the high court imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh on the company for non-compliance with official orders.

Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw underscored the court's decision, affirming that "the law of the land must be followed."

"Due to legal restrictions, we are unable to publish executive orders, but we believe that making them public is essential for transparency. This lack of disclosure can lead to a lack of accountability and arbitrary decision-making," X's statement concluded.